Trading wax for oil pays off for masseur

Press, 19 February 1986, Page 6

Trading wax for oil pays off for masseur

By

KAREN NIMMO

NZPA staff correspondent, London Rubbing wax into his surfboard on an Auckland beach prepared Gary Trainer for a life amongst stars of British film and theatre. Mr Trainer, since his “beach bum” days more than a decade ago, has traded the wax for massage oil. As an acupuncturist, osteopath and masseur, his patients include the “Gandhi” star, Ben Kingsley, the actress, Glenda Jackson, and the rising Royal Shakespeare Theatre actor, Antony Sher. Dressed in a trendy suit and bright scarf, he looks nothing like a witch doctor. But he admits the term “acupuncture” used to make him think of little men chasing patients with huge spears. Images like that still make him smile. “A lot of people still think of acupuncture as weird cranky stuff,” he said. But Mr Trainer, aged 29, said alternative medicine produced results which spoke for themselves.

He is dedicated to making people as perfect as possible. His work is centred on the showbusiness world and he travels between London’s best theatres and recording studios. His clients have nicknamed him the “top pop doc.” The Royal Shakespeare Company employs him on a retainer basis — he treated Sher throughout his performance of Richard 111 which received brilliant reviews. Mr Trainer left New Zealand nine years ago. After, abandoning the surf he spent three years “off the rails” meditating with a group in Auckland. He says it taught him to be happy. Deciding he needed a career, he trained as a nurse. After qualifying, an accident at work left him with a painful back injury which didn’t respond to conventional treatment. “I had to get away ... when I got to London I was living on painkillers . .. my active life had come to a grinding halt. Desperation drove me totry acupuncture ... after 18 months agony, I was 90 per cent better after the first treatment and completely cured after the second.” Mr Trainer, excited by the results, began to study the subject. He discovered a “mind-blowing" variety of uses for alternative medicine. He spent six years training in acupuncture and osteopathy, supporting himself by working as a masseur on health farms. “I was broke and lived in a squat. But I was so keen. If they told us to work three afternoons a week, I’d do five.” He was asked by the college principal to stay for an extra year working at the clinic. It gave his confidence a tremendous boost. “When I finished I thought ’I can sit here and wait to be found or I can

let them know I’m here’,” he said. He knew his methods worked. He wanted to offer people the best in alternative medicine. He recognised the power of the news media and got himself a P.R. man.

His string of good results includes the relief of 12 years back pain in four treatments and a cure for a nurse, aged 23, who suffered 48 nose bleeds a week.

Not every case can be cured. Acupuncture works best on acute pain. It can relieve chronic pain but that takes longer. “I just ask people to give me three sessions. You can tell if there is going to be an improvement after that time. The idea of dragging out a treatment to make money sickens me.” Mr Trainer wants to popularise alternative medicine rather than convert people to it. He believes it can complement western practices. “For example, I’m not against physiotherapy but

acupuncture is five times more powerful in pain relief. That makes it ideal in the theatre world where performance is immediate.” Not surprisingly, he has a special sympathy for back problems. Nine out of 10 people suffer back pain at some stage. It’s the biggest cause of people taking time off work in Britain, he said. Mr Trainer plans to open a clinic within three months. He wants to educate people to take responsibility for their own health. He is working on a programme of back management and injury prevention. He oozes enthusiasm. He is “knocked out” by the effectiveness of the methods. So, it seems, are the public. Last week he had calls from 55 new patients, several offers of financial support, and fan mail. One day Mr Trainer may return to New Zealand. He misses it. But, he said, London is the centre of world trends.